Constructive Development Why does it matter to professional coaches?
Robert Kegan, PhD, licensed clinical psychologist
The William and Miriam Meehan Professor in Adult Learning and Professional Development Harvard Graduate School of Education
Co-Director, Change Leadership Group Educational Chair, Institute for Management and Leadership in Education Constructive Development Why does it matter to professional coaches?
Robert Kegan, PhD, licensed clinical psychologist
Books:
The Evolving Self In Over Our Heads How the Way We Talk Can Change the Way We Work Change Leadership: Transforming our Schools Immunity to Change www.mindsatwork.com Constructive Development Why does it matter to professional coaches?
Robert Kegan is a psychologist who teaches, researches, writes, and consults about adult development, adult learning, and professional development.
His work explores the possibility and necessity of ongoing psychological transformation in adulthood; the fit between adult capacities and the hidden demands of modern life; and the evolution of consciousness in adulthood and its implications for supporting adult learning, professional development, and ad ult ed ucation . Today we begin to explore its implications for professional coaches in leadership and healthcare. What does constructive mean?
We construct not only our reality, what we perceive, believe, and what is meaningful, we construct our way of making meaning. What is constructive development?
The process over time of qualitative change and increasing complexity according to principles of stabilityyg and change. Constructive developmental stages: Big Ds
We develop through life stages and make big leaps in the way we view ourselves & our lives, and the way we make meaning. Subject-Object Theory & Consciousness
What distinguishes levels of consciousness is what we are “made by” or subject to, or embedded in, and what we “make up” or is the object of our making, or is at arms-length
Consciousness levels increase in complexity and one evolves into and through each level one at a time
One cannot understand and relate to those at a higher level of consciousness
There is an early, mid, and late stage for each level of consciousness Subject-Object Theory & Consciousness
Third Order (Traditional)
My values , ideals, and roles are made by my family , tribe , or culture..
I make up my disposition, needs, and preferences. Fourth Order (Modernist)
What makes me - I am autonomous, self-authoring, self-regulating; I want to find my true self
I make up my values, ideals, and roles – I am not defined by others Fifth Order (Post Modernist)
What makes me - I am continually self-transforming and evolving
I make up my form of self. I am one of my multiple selves at any point in time based on the context – I make up my autonomous self- authoring and self-regulating self Third Order: Self is Subject to Tribe Fourth Order: Self-determination Fifth Order: Self-transforming Leadership Examples
Third Order
I follow the values, ideals, strateggpies of those I report to
I manage the elements that support the strategies of my leaders
I resolve conflicts by honoring the strategies and desires of those I follow
.Fourth Order
I define values, vision, and strategy for my organization
I am responsible for controlling the definition of vision and strategy
I resolve conflicts by validating and appreciating the unique needs and differences among parties Fifth Order
I lead a process to build a collective strategy and seek wide input
I welcome conflicts as they lead all parties to grow, change, and evolve Well-being Examples
Third Order
My health and well-being are a product of my life and work de fine d by my cu lture an d the times
I follow lifestyle norms (fitness, mind-body, nutrition/weight, emotional regulation) and those purported by my leaders
I f oll ow my pre ferences withi n lifes ty le norms Fourth Order
I define how I value myy,ygg health, and my engagement in a lifest yle that fosters mental and physical health
I want to achieve my optimal health and well-being Fifth Order
My mind AND body are continually evolving
I am engaged in continually optimizing health and well-being, a lifelong process In Over Our Heads
Today’s demands of parenting, marriage, careers, healing, and health are designed for 4th Order consciousness w hile aroun d 50% of th e popul ati on is at 3rd Order Consciousness.
In adult life we are left to sink or swim in the absence of a society-wide educational curriculum to enable a stepwise transformation from 3rd to 4th Order.
Great leadership (think Good to Great) demands 5th Order Consciousness while most leaders are at 4th Order.
In corporate life, the emphasis is on training in skills development not educational steps enabling more objective and complex meaning-making. Why does Constructive Development matter to professional coaches?
Coaches already learn techniques to foster constructive development
Empathy
Self-motivation for change
Coaching the expansion of consciousness
Overcoming the immunity to change Coaches already learn techniques to foster constructive development
Exploration and amplification of personal values, dreams, and visions
Fostering of self-motivation and intrinsic motivation
Inquiry and reflections foster self-discovery and iihtinsight – creating awareness o f wh a t cli en ts are “owned” by
Intuitive dance or relational flow expands client’s sense of self in the moment
Coaching process and client achievement over time fosters and anchors outgrowth of old thinking, feeling, and behaving Empathy
It is important for coaches and clients to understand and appreciate without judgment:
the existence of different levels of complexity of meaning-making.
that people at a lower level of consciousness do not have the capacity to make meaning at a higher level
that it is important to work to connect at the other’s level of meaning-making
that there is an opportunity to help clients and help clients help others take small steps to expand self- objectivity Source of self-motivation for change ((gIntegrated Reg ulation)
Third Order Self -Motivation
Aligned with tribe, being respected and affirmed by tribe’s leaders
Fourth Order Self-Motivation
Defining and realizing true self in collaboration with others
Fifth Order Self-Motivation
Opportunity to grow and evolve multiple selves in a dance w ith o thers an d var ious con tex ts Coaching the expansion of consciousness
Preparation
1. Understand the client’s current level of consciousness
2. Understand growth needed to get to the next level of consciousness
3. Convey to client the appeal and value (more freedom) of greater objectivity
4. Create optimal conditions of empathy, positivity, and courage to support new experiments with more objective meaning-making Subject-Object Interview
A sophisticated method designed to help coaching clients appreciate their growing edge and become aware of what they are subject to and develop distance, and a wider perspective and greater objectivity. Coaching the expansion of consciousness
Development
1. Help client find and pursue passions as a driver of desire for a higher level of consciousness
2. Raise client awareness of what client is made by or subject to – what’s inside box, inside story/narrative
3. Find small steps to experiment with making one’s beliefs rather than being made by them, getting out of one’s box
4. Reinforce and harvest insights and steps toward greater objectivity Overcoming the Immunity to Change
Development
1. Discover hidden commitments, what make us and sabotage change
2. Move them from subject to object
3. Move forward with change unhindered Coaching Developmental Cycle – Coaching D
Coaches help clients move from Point A to Point B. Constructive Development It matters to professional coaches!
Robert Kegan, PhD, licensed clinical psychologist
The William and Miriam Meehan Professor in Adult Learning and Professional Development Harvard Graduate School of Education
Co-Director, Change Leadership Group Educational Chair, Institute for Management and Leadership in Education